LONDON, ENGLAND, September 18 — Venture capitalist Alexis Ohanian’s high-gloss all-women’s-events venture into meet promotion carried off its third edition across the Atlantic from its New York City birthplace in the British capital. It went down with the same celebratory party vibe that marked Athlos’s first two stagings.
Organizers’ messaging around the meet also emphasized intent to stage two Athlos meets in ’27 and schedule them earlier in the year within the sport’s traditional season. The group has also floated the possibility of additional European stagings.
This time the meet went off 5 days after the new World Ultimate Championship — in much closer temporal proximity to the WA season-capper than for Athlos25, which was staged nearly 3 weeks after the Tokyo World Championships.
Winning times for the 6 track events on the 7-event schedule were all at least a bit faster than in ’25. The prize money structure, paying $65,000 to event winners down to $6000 for 6th (totaling $151K per event), was bumped up from a year ago.
While Ultimate Championship prize purses were heftier ($150K for winners down to $10K for 8th and $2K for 16th in relevant events), Athlos out-moneyed the Diamond League Final, in which the prize pyramid topped out at $30K for winners in many events and $60K for those in designated “Diamond+” disciplines.
The StoneX Stadium venue (named Barnet Copthall before the advent of facility name sponsorships) at capacity can accommodate 10,500 spectators, the seating plan grouped several thousand spectators into the homestretch tribune for crowd noise focus on the finish line, straightaway events and a long jump contested on an elevated platform.
A contest of special interest for the home crowd was certainly the mile. Britain’s World Indoor and European champion Georgia Hunter Bell faced a field that included the three milers who had bested her over the last month in either the DL Final or Ultimate Championship.
In that group, led by DL Final/Ultimate victor Klaudia Kazimierska, lurked Nikki Hiltz, winner of the Eugene DL mile 6 weeks before the Euros, DL final runnerup Dorcus Ewoi and Aussie Jessica Hull, 2nd-place finisher in the Ultimate 5000 five days earlier.
Hull took up the early lead through 64.4 and 2:09.5 splits at 440 and 880. With no pacers or wavelights, the tilt then settled into a lap 3 marshalling of strength before what was sure to be a frenzied and fast final circuit.
Hunter Bell used that third lap to move to the fore at 1000m. She passed 400 to go around 3:19, and on the last backstretch the decisive jockeying began. Kazimierska moved to the leader’s inside shoulder and from 1500 onward down the straight Ewoi strode from 4th to a pass into 2nd just past 200 to go.
Around the last bend Hunter Bell played her hand. Swing into the inside of lane 2 off the turn, she led Ewoi on her outside by two steps entering the homestraight. Kazimierska, committed to an inside line, sprinted with resolve and rapid turnover. Ewoi faded just enough for Hunter Bell to almost have it in the bag, but Kazimierska flew past 10m from the line to take it, 4:19.43–4:19.54.
The Polish alumna of Oregon had closed in 59.7. Her bank balance would also close on a hot streak as her $65K take was added to $210,000 earned for her DL Final and Ultimate wins in the preceding 13 days.
Interviewed pro-boxing style by Dawn Harper Nelson for the stadium and TV audiences, Kazimierska credited “just believing in myself and my training, and just trying to look at the times.”
Asked by Harper Nelson how $65,000 sounds, she said, “I mean, awesome. And the crown!” That’s right, coronation of champions is an Athlos set piece. The 1½lb sterling silver headpieces placed on winners’ heads are handcrafted by Tiffany & Co. Each has an estimated value of around $25,000.
The Dominican Republic’s Marileidy Paulino, undefeated in 9 finals over 400 this season, with 7 of those outings sub-49, looked to add one more victory. She brought the added incentive of having won at Athlos the last two years.
Paulino went with her favored heat-up-the-homestretch race plan, but found herself with a fight on her hands over the straight where she typically excels. Norway’s European champ Henriette Jæger — second to Paulino at both the DL Final and Ultimate meets — seized advantage around the second turn. One lane outside the favorite’s corridor 5 position, Jæger led by close to a meter entering the stretch.
Paulino, listed at 5-7¾ (1.72) versus Jæger’s 5-5 (1.65), unfurled her longer legs to catch the tenacious Norwegian with some 50m left and leaned at the line to win by about the width of her torso, 48.73–48.78.
Jæger’s time lowered her Norwegian record and the margin was the closest for Paulino since her last 400 loss — to Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone at the ’25 Worlds.
A win is a win, though, and this one carried Paulino into a tie with East German World Record holder Marita Koch for the most career sub-49s — 15 races below that barrier.
Americans won 4 of the evening’s 7 events. On the track the U.S. crown winners were Sha’Carri Richardson in the 100 in 10.80, Gabby Thomas in the 200 in 22.13 and Alaysha Johnson in the 100H, 12.50–12.51 over Tobi Amusan. Richardson and Thomas are among athlete’s who reportedly have equity stakes in Athlos.
In a 3-attempts long jump competition NCAA champion Alyssa Jones held her mojo together through a pair of fouls then leapt to the lead on her last jump. Jones’ 21-10¼ (6.66) was her shortest best mark in a major meet since the Mt. SAC Relays in April, yet sufficient to best France’s Hilary Kpatcha by 2cm (three quarters of an inch).
Fashion figures prominently in the presentation and buzz around Athlos, thus it was fitting home heroine Kelly Hodgkinson donned a striking black hooded speedsuit (reminiscent of the green one Cathy Freeman wore to take Sydney 2000 Olympic gold). In that costume, with cats-eye reflective shades to complete the look, Hodgkinson front-ran through the 800 to win by more than 2 seconds. It was her first victory since the London DL in July. Underscoring the roll that her event is on at the moment, Hodgkinson’s 1:56.40 clocking, while just the 26th-fastest mark this season, was 0.32 faster than the time that won her Olympic gold in Paris 2 years ago.
ATHLOS LONDON RESULTS
100(0.0): 1. Sha’Carri Richardson (US) 10.80; 2. Zoe Hobbs (NZ) 11.19; 3. Anavia Battle (US) 11.25; 4. Imani-Lara Lansiquot (GB) 11.35; 5. Daryll Neita (GB) 11.36.
200(0.1): 1. Gabby Thomas (US) 22.13; 2. Kayla White (US) 22.40; 3. Battle 22.43; 4. Rhasidat Adeleke (Ire) 22.64; 5. Shaunae Miller-Uibo (Bah) 22.92.
400: 1. Marileidy Paulino (DR) 48.73 (=record 15th lifetime sub-49.00); 2. Henriette Jæger (Nor) 48.78 NR; 3. Nickisha Pryce (Jam) 49.39; 4. Lieke Klaver (Neth) 49.66; 5. Stacey-Ann Williams (Jam) 50.11; 6. Natalia Bukowiecka (Pol) 50.55.
800: 1. Keely Hodgkinson (GB) 1:56.40; 2. Valentina Rosamilia (Swi) 1:58.75; 3. Renelle Lamote (Fra) 2:00.15;
4. Juliette Whittaker (US) 2:00.46; 5. Sophie O’Sullivan (Ire) 2:00.53; 6. Raevyn Rogers (US) 2:01.12.
Mile: 1. Klaudia Kazimierska (Pol) 4:19.43; 2. Georgia Hunter Bell (GB) 4:19.54; 3. Dorcus Ewoi (Ken) 4:19.84; 4. Nikki Hiltz (US) 4:22.72; 5. Jessica Hull (Aus) 4:24.27.
100H(1.2): 1. Alaysha Johnson (US) 12.50; 2. Tobi Amusan (Ngr) 12.51; 3. Devynne Charlton (Bah) 12.63;
4. Danielle Williams (Jam) 12.63; 5. Megan Simmonds (Jam) 12.66; 6. Rayniah Jones (US) 12.83.
LJ: 1. Alyssa Jones (US) 21-10¼ (6.66); 2. Hilary Kpatcha (Fra) 21-9½ (6.64); 3. Monae’ Nichols (US) 21-7¼ (6.58);
4. Agate De Sousa (Por) 21-2¾ (6.47); 5. Claire Bryant (US) 21-2 (6.45).
